Monday, August 27, 2012

Camping Vacation

Mike managed to get a few days off of work last week, so we packed up most of the kids and the tent and headed to our old stomping grounds in Battle Creek.  The city was hosting the World Hot Air Balloon Championship.  We drove our Mountaineer and Katie drove her Volvo.  The original plan was for everyone to go in the Mountaineer, but it worked out very well that Kate drove also.  She has a huge trunk and carted most of the clothes, towels, and bedding/sleeping bags.

After we arrived, we picked out a site near the bathrooms.  None of us like to stumble around in the dark in search of  facilities. The tent went up quickly and the kids staked out their sleeping spot in the tent.  Little did they know that Mike and I would rearrange the sleeping bags, so that we could sleep in the same area.  :)

Madelyn waiting for the ball to be passes.

Katie and her buddy Allie walking out of the water.
 The beach at Eagle Lake was not too crowded and the water was warm.  One of the things we miss most about Battle Creek is the availability of nice swimming beaches.  The county where we live has only a few beaches and they are small and rocky.  Mike and I picked up a pink plastic ball and a small football for everyone to throw around on the beach.

Steve passing the ball to Joe.
 
Joe returning the ball.






































 Kate and Steve were tired out, so we returned to our campsite after everyone has received a healthy dose of sunshine.  Madelyn couldn't resist the opportunity to capture photos of their repose.

Mike, Madelyn, Joe, Paige, Allie, and I played a new dice game called Farkle.  We purchased the game on a whim and were really pleased with how much fun everyone had playing.  Farkle is perfect of playing with a range of ages.  We all shouted "Farkle" whenever someone failed to get the necessary number on the dice.  Paige and Allie had so much fun yelling that they kept rolling even when they had built up a huge bank of points.

We stopped by our favorite Battle Creek pizza place and purchased pizza for supper.  While we were eating at a large city park, the balloons began to head into town.  We followed the balloons for a few hours and the younger girls managed to get several photos.






TO BE CONTINUED......

2 comments:

Emily Cook said...

Looks like lots of fun!
We plan to camp in Northern MI in October!!! It won't quite be swimming weather, I think!

Emily

PS I saw your awesome book list. Have you thought of joining goodreads? It is a fun and easy way to make lists like that plus you get to rate and recommend books to others.

Of course, if you don't want to get sucked into a time-stealing internet vortex, I do understand :)

Emily
www.weakandloved.com

Double Sleeping Bags said...

Sure looks like a great place to go camping. Nice lake, open area, and close to the road - what more could you need? :]
-Jackie